Today’s EuroTrash Monday is an absolute race-fest as we get all the reports, video and quotes from the E3 Harelbeke and Gent-Wevelgem. Then we move onto the stage races for a catch-up with Catalunya, Coppi e Bartali and the Critérium International. If you have missed any race action…it’s all here! You’ll need that coffee this morning.

TOP STORY: The Cobbled Classics!
It’s that time of year at last, the Cobbled Classics have kicked in with the E3 Harelbeke and Gent-Wevelgem and Peter Sagan and John Degenkolb showed who has the early form. But let’s face it, the two biggest races on the pave are yet to come; the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix. Tom Boonen and Fabian Cancellara are the two guys we want to see in battle and when/if it happens PEZ will be there to give you the blow-by-blow action. We have Lee road side and the rest of the PEZ crew will give you the previews, race reports and the best photos possible over the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned for the “PEZ Cobbled Classics” coverage ’14.

The hard men of the Northern Cobbles:

Gent-Wevelgem 2014
John Degenkolb (Giant-Shimano) has made up for his disappointment at Milan-Sanremo last weekend with an emphatic victory in the Gent-Wevelgem in Belgium on Sunday. The race came down to a bunch sprint and John timed his effort to perfection, coming off the wheel to come past Peter Sagan (Cannondale) and launch his Giant across the line to take one of the biggest victories of his young career so far.

After the stage, John said: “This race is one of the really big classics and I am so happy to add Gent-Wevelgem to my palmares. The race worked out perfectly for us today. The guys were really strong and Dries did a great job chasing towards the end, he is really strong at the moment. Koen de Kort positioned me perfectly in the final, driving me onto Sagan’s wheel and I had the right position and could come through at the right time so it was a fantastic sprint. I am a very happy man.”
“My shape is good and this is a good sign for the next big races. Last weekend at Milan-Sanremo was probably one of the most disappointing moments of my career, and today everything went 100% better than last week so I can forget about that disappointment now.”

Tom Boonen (Omega Pharma – Quick-Step) finished 5th, launching his sprint on the left side. “I still had some pain in my hand,” Boonen said. “In the beginning it was still sensitive. On the cobbles it still hurts, but on the normal roads it was acceptable. It was not something I was worrying about. I have some time left to recover from this. As for the race, I was good today. The race was really fast. You can see if it’s fast like that the splits are maybe appearing later in the race. Everyone is already tired. It wasn’t really windy today, so it changed the tactics a lot. The first time on the Kemmelberg we were attending the race in the front. I told Styby straight away I was going to aim for the sprint, not try to bomb the race on the climbs. It’s too far to get to the final. So I concentrated on the sprint from the last time on the Kemmelberg. Then everything went the way I was hoping it would, the team brought me until the final, but in the sprint we messed it up in the last 400 meters. But OK, my condition was good. So maybe it hurts even more. If you start sprinting and blow right away you say OK, but if you start sprinting from 15th position and finish 5th, it’s maybe a missed chance. It’s painful to lose a race like that. But, that happens and now we look ahead.”

André Greipel probably broke his collarbone in a crash on the run-in to the finish, further examination in the hospital of Herentals will determine that. Marc Sergeant, Lotto Belisol manager: “We came to Ghent-Wevelgem with two options in mind. André Greipel would sprint for the win or Jürgen Roelandts and Tony Gallopin would battle for the victory if it didn’t turn out to be a bunch sprint. All three of them survived the selection after the last ascent of the Kemmel and Monteberg. Later Lars Bak and Marcel Sieberg bridged the gap so that was the perfect scenario.”

“All day long we rode on small roads with many turns and eventually it’s a crash on a big straight road that crushes our plans. Riders crashed behind André, but a bike that catapulted through the air hit André and so he crashed. His shoulder hit the kerb. This is a disappointment for André and the entire team. He’s our finisher in many races. In the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix he could have helped the team a lot.”

Jürgen Roelandts (Lotto Belisol): “My tenth place is a cold comfort. Today we made the race. I felt better than Friday in the E3 Harelbeke. Together with Tony Gallopin I was always riding attentively in the front to respond to any attacks. We were with five riders in the peloton that would sprint for the victory, we were confident that we would at least take a podium spot. This is a big disappointment. I didn’t see the crash, but Manuel Quinziato came to tell me André was down. I had used a lot of energy along the way, which I didn’t have left for the sprint. André would have been a big help for the Ronde and Roubaix. We have to get over this set back and focus on next Sunday. My shape and that of Gallopin is increasing, that’s positive with the Tour of Flanders in mind.”

E3 Harelbeke 2014
With about 31km to go in the race, Geraint Thomas (Sky), John Degenkolb (Giant-Shimano), and both Terpstra and Vandenbergh (Omega Pharma – Quick-Step) had attacked a group that included riders such as Fabian Cancellara (Trek) and OPQS’s Tom Booonen. Peter Sagan (Cannondale) was able to connect with the attacking group as they bridged to three riders from the original breakaway.

With 26.1km to go, the gap was down to 16 seconds with Cancellara chasing hard on the front behind. Sagan decided it was time to attack and prevent the catch with about 25km to go, and only Thomas, Terpstra, and Vandenbergh were able to stay with him. Terpstra was racing just days after his solo victory at Dwars door Vlaanderen.

Vandenbergh worked hard on the front and helped extend the gap to 40 seconds with 18.5km to go. OPQS rider Zdenek Stybar suffered a mechanical in the Boonen and Cancellara group around that point, but was able to chase back on.

The lead group would extend their gap following an attack by Terpstra with 5.9km to go. The gap went out to 45 seconds, and then following an attack by Vandenbergh with 5km to go, the gap was up to 52 seconds by the time he was caught at the 4.2km to go mark. It was clear the race would come down to the select group. Vandenbergh did his best to try and attack several times, but Sagan was able to make his way back. Terpstra also tried to accelerate, but everything was neutralized by Sagan in anticipation of the bunch sprint.

Vandenbergh launched a final attack inside the final few hundred meters, but Thomas countered. Sagan then went over the top of Thomas to win the race, while Terpstra gave his all to try and catch Sagan. Terpstra’s effort was enough for a 2nd place finish. Thomas was 3rd, Vandenbergh 4th.

“It was pretty hectic,” Terpstra said. “In the beginning I had pretty sore legs because I was still a little bit tired from Wednesday of course. That was a hard effort. So at the beginning I wanted to spin the legs, but there were narrow roads, a lot of crashes, up and down, left right, it was really chaotic. That was tough, but we came through really well. In the end, almost all of the team was in front. It pays off to be two guys in the front group. There was a crash, which created a small gap, then we had the Patersberg, the Oude Kwaremont, and it was full gas racing. I directly felt Sagan was in good shape on the small hills. He had good accelerations. Also, when Stijn and I started to attack, he closed the gap easily with a big acceleration. We were already going like 50 kilometres per hour in the last kilometres, so it was hard to attack because you had to go 60 kilometres or something. So, it was a sprint. I knew it was going to be really tough to beat him. He showed he was the fastest one today. But, OK, especially with a win on Wednesday and now 2nd place today, for the team I think this is not so bad. We were in front. We didn’t win, but having two guys in the top 4 is really good I think. This is top racing in the WorldTour. This is mainly the same competitors as Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. So, to have these kinds of results is a good performance I think.”

“It was hard race,” Vandenbergh said. “After the hills I stayed good in front pulling for Keisse and Stybar. After the Patersberg I pulled for Stybar and Tom, but on the Kwaremont the race exploded. Then I was in the second group, but I made the jump to the first group where Niki was. That was a good moment otherwise maybe my race was finished. So, then we were with two guys, but Sagan was really strong. On the second to last climb he was also pulling so the guys of the original breakaway lost contact. That was also a good situation. But in the final we tried not to go to the finish with Sagan. But he closed every gap. So did Geraint Thomas. But, OK, we tried our best. For me it’s confirmation that my condition is there and I am solid for the Classics. I always start the race helping Tom staying in position. I lost some energy doing some work, but I felt good in the final despite this. I am happy for that and think two guys finishing in the top five today is a good result for the team.”

“Today started OK, but at La Houppe, the first climb of the day where the race really starts there was a big crash at the bottom of the climb.” Boonen said. “We were near front of the peloton, 15th position. I hurt my thumb of the right hand in the crash. We were there with five guys of the team in the crash. Straight away I knew it was going to be a very difficult day because that’s where the race starts. So we had to go faster uphill than the first guys. IAM and Trek were going full speed as there were a lot of favourites in the crash. So, we had to go faster uphill and then try to have the same speed downhill because they were going 100 percent on the descent. So it took us a lot of time to catch them back. When we did we had all the misery because guys were crashing and having flat tires, so it was hard to make it back into good position. So it was very dangerous to get back. Finally we made it back to the front and I think we regained control over the race. I told Stijn and Niki they had to pay attention as I had a lot of pain in my hand. I was trying to do the maximum but I knew it would be difficult. On the cobblestones it really hurt. In the handlebar it was OK, but on top of the handlebar it was really painful and I couldn’t really accelerate out of the saddle. So, on the Kwaremont, I tried for a certain moment, but at a certain point it’s just enough.”

Peter Sagan (Cannondale) said after the race: “I want to thank the team today, especially my teammate who has the same size bike as me and swapped bikes with me after about 100km.” He added, “I didn’t think the race would go well but I felt better and better. The finale was tough and there were a lot of crashes. On the Oude Kwaremont when we caught the break, I attacked to create a small group and we managed to go all the way to the finish. It’s good for me to win; it has helped me bounce back after Milan-San Remo.”

6th Tony Gallopin (Lotto Belisol): “It was a nervous race today with many crashes. Up to the Taaienberg it was difficult to position myself well, but from then on it got much better. In the final I felt good, that’s why I jumped away at the end. Just after the top of the Oude Kwaremont I unfortunately couldn’t close the gap on the escapees like Sagan and Vandenbergh did. The top four was gone, then we had to aim for a place as high as possible. The E3 has given me confidence. I’m curious for what’s coming.”

Jürgen Roelandts (Lotto Belisol): “Before we began the climb of La Houppe I crashed. I could easily get back to the front rows of the bunch and was positioned well to start the crucial hills. With Marcel and Tony we were well represented when we started the Paterberg. On the Oude Kwaremont I couldn’t follow the best. A twelfth place isn’t a top result, but we tried to make the race. That’s also our goal the next weeks. In the chase on the four leaders we noticed that the work of Cancellara and Devolder hardly had any effect; the best were in front. You saw that in the way that Vandenbergh and Sagan closed the gap after the Kwaremont. It was a very nervous race. Like I mentioned I crashed once and two times I came close. The good weather made more riders think they had a chance and so there was lots of pushing in the run-up to the hills and cobbles.”

“This is what Belgian Classics are,” Lampre-Merida sport director Maini explained. “We had to face too many problems that influenced a team performance that, in any case, was not of top level. In view of the next appointments, it will be important to set the conditions that could allow us to avoid that the inconveniences could influence our performances. Modolo had a bruise on the back, but I’m sure that our masseurs, thanks to Tecarterapia, will erase the pain.”

Volta a Catalunya 2014
Everything was in store for a thrilling day during the 166 kilometre long Stage 4, the queen stage of this year’s Volta a Catalunya containing five climbs and a mercilessly steep uphill finish to Vallter 2000. With only seconds separating the top contenders, the overall lead was within reach for several riders.

Four riders: Maxime Mederel (Europcar), Stef Clement (Belkin), Ruben Plaza (Movistar) and Thomas De Gendt (Omega Pharma – Quick-Step) used the first climb as a launching pad to rocket away from the pack where Katusha spent the first part of the day as a locomotive for the peloton. But entering the final 40 kilometres, Tinkoff-Saxo went to the front of the field with Contador dancing on his pedals at the back of his train.

As the escapees took on the final climb it shattered and De Gendt and Plaza were the only survivors as the peloton closed them down. The temperature had dropped to 2 degrees as the rain fell and then the snow started to have a visible affect on the supermen of the field and riders were seen on the steep slope grinding their teeth in agony.

With 8 kilometres to the snowy and foggy finish line, the breakaway was reeled in and Tinkoff-Saxo continued the pace making. It seemed like everything was played into the hands of the leading rider, Joaquin Rodriguez (Katusha) as none of the favourites wanted to launch an early attack. Warren Barguil (Giant-Shimano) jumped from the group of favourites with 3 kilometres to go while the others kept eying each other until the final two kilometres where Chris Froome (Sky) finally launched a stinging attack. Contador shut down the gap and went past the Sky rider as Rodriguez hung on to his wheel. Tejay van Garderen (BMC) took advantage of a lull in the action by continuing his pace and going clear shadowed by Romain Bardet (Ag2r-La Mondiale), but Van Garderen made it to the finish line. Alberto Contador finished third, a few seconds ahead of Rodriguez and Quintana, Froome finished 7th.

Despite the demanding stage, the GC wasn’t altered dramatically.

Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) crossed the line in third place, “It was a real day of cycling”, said the
leader of Tinkoff-Saxo, “in which you realize how hard the bike is. The truth is that I had good legs and perhaps would have had to try something else, but hey, I’m happy because my legs are fine. Tactical options are sometimes like this, but the tour is still open, there are still three days and important things can happen.” Contador added, “The important thing now is not getting cold, recover as best as possible and tomorrow will be another day.” As to making an attack, “you never know how the rivals go, but what’s done is done. Still are three days left, from here to Barcelona things are very difficult, but not impossible.”

Tinkoff-Saxo DS, Philippe Mauduit: “It was a very tough day for everyone and our boys did a lot of work pulling the peloton for a lot of kilometres. Towards the finish, it was all up the GC favourites and they are obviously all very strong and unfortunately for us the time differences were small crossing the finish line. But it doesn’t mean that it’s completely hopeless. With 4 seconds separating us from the win, it would be unwise not to think of ways to come by it. But it will be difficult as Katusha and Purito (Rodriguez) are looking mighty strong.”

BMC’s Tejay van Garderen attacked out of a select group that included the race favourites in the closing kilometres. “I let the other guys do a couple little attacks first so they could kind of wear each other out,” van Garderen said. “I think I got a little lucky and I think the cold might have helped me a little bit. I think I can cope with it a bit better than some of those guys who are 60 kilos. This is my first WorldTour victory and to be up there against all the names like (Alberto) Contador, (Chris) Froome and Purito (Joaquim Rodriguez) – Grand Tour winners – is a huge honour.”

With three stages to go, van Garderen sits third overall, seven seconds off Rodriguez’s lead and three seconds behind Contador. The overall winner of last year’s USA Pro Challenge and Amgen Tour of California said making a further move up the standings will mean staying aggressive. “It’s going to be difficult because there aren’t that many opportunities,” he said. “There is no time trial, there are no more mountain stages. But if we see an opportunity, we are definitely going to take it.”

Chris Horner did not start stage 4 of the Volta a Catalunya. With the advice of the medical and technical staff of the Lampre-Merida team, the Vuelta a España winner decided to quit due to the tendinitis in his left Achilles tendon. The withdrawal will allow Horner to plan a proper program of recovery and training with the Giro d’Italia as the main target and he will also perform some reconnaissance on the course of the main stages.

Luka Mezgec (Giant-Shimano) sprinted to his third stage win of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya in Friday’s Stage 5 with another comfortable win at the end of a dominant day of racing by his team.
Despite a second category climb in the final 20km’s of the race, the peloton flew into the finish in Valls together and Mezgec once again proved that he is the fastest man in the race.

Earlier in the day, Georg Preidler (Giant-Shimano) broke away initially with seven others before moving clear with Marcus Burghardt (BMC) for company. They built up a healthy lead of over three minutes and this meant that behind the team could concentrate on keeping Mezgec out of trouble rather than having to chase.

After being set up by the team in the final kilometres, Luka put the power down and put over a bike length between himself and the second placed Julian Alaphilippe (Omega Pharma – Quick-Step).

After the stage, Luka had a wry smile on his face. “During the stage I didn’t think it was going to happen as my legs felt empty – I think it was because of the cold yesterday. With Georg up the road we could concentrate on getting over the climb. The guys stuck with me and when I heard that there was a head wind the other side I got a confidence boost and knew that it would slow. I went all out and got over the top with the main group, and then the guys started to control the bunch.”
“In the final kilometre Warren Barguil set me up, putting me near the front. I knew that I needed to be near but not right at the front into the last corner and that worked out well. It’s great that even with a young team out here we can play such a big part in this race.”

Second on the stage Julian Alaphilippe (Omega Pharma – Quick-Step): “Today the stage was super fast at the beginning,” Alaphilippe said. “It was really hard to stay there near the front. In the final, before the last six or seven kilometers, there was a small climb. There I was well placed thanks also to the job of Pieter Serry and Gianluca Brambilla. Then we went downhill and I was good, but in the last kilometer I was a little bit far from the head of the peloton. I was more or less in 15th position. I had to do a real sprint to be near the front. I did a second sprint to try and win the stage, but of course it was impossible and I think the strongest won the race. But, also, I think I had good legs in this Volta Ciclista a Catalunya. At this point I’ve finished 4th, 3rd, and 2nd in sprints. So I can’t blame myself. I am also here to learn as I am young. Tomorrow it will be more of a stage for pure sprinters. If there is a chance I will try. On Sunday, I will try to honor a race until the end even if the parcours is difficult.”

Tinkoff-Saxo’s Alberto Contador showed some great effort sprinting his way to 6th position: “Today’s stage revealed that Alberto is very confident. With an attack on the final climb before heading down towards the finish line where he participated in the bunch sprints as well clearly underlines that he’s strong and he’s not afraid of going all in. The rest of the boys did a super job protecting him throughout the stage where we didn’t have to pull at any time. The race ends Sunday and we’ll see what happens tomorrow,” says DS, Philippe Mauduit.

Stef Clement triumphed in Stage 6 of the Volta a Catalunya on Saturday. The Dutchman brought the Belkin team its seventh victory of the season, with a vicious attack in the final kilometres. Clement was part of the break that escaped early in the 163 kilometre stage from El Vendrell to Vilanova i la Geltrúdeel. In the finale, when it became clear that the peloton would not be able to catch the leaders, it started raining attacks. Clement’s punch turned out to be decisive.

“I don’t win many races, so this is great. The fact that this is a WorldTour race makes it extra special,” said Clement. “I’m going to enjoy this to the fullest. This victory is a nice reward for the team. We’ve had some bad luck as Wilco dropped out of the top ten after a crash, but we have shown resilience and were in every break in the last few days. This win makes up for all the bad luck. I really feel that the guys are happy for me.”

Clement received compliments from his fellow escapee’s right after the race. “They all came up to me to congratulate me and they said that I had just been the strongest today. In the last few kilometres, it was a kind of game, though it wasn’t only wisdom. Just being strong can bring you a long way. Because I don’t often get in this position, I felt some pressure, but fortunately everything fell into place.”

Clement celebrated his victory in the red mountain jersey. Today he gained some more points and strengthened his lead in the classification. The Dutchman, however, knows that a tough final day awaits him tomorrow. “It would be foolish not to fight for the jersey as today I had to work hard for the points, it took a lot of power. But, honestly, I haven’t really thought about it just yet. First, I want to enjoy this victory!”

Frans Maassen was very happy with Clement’s victory. “This year our focus is centred on the WorldTour, so this win is great. It’s always nice to achieve your objectives. The way Stef claimed the victory, in the mountain jersey, made everything extra special. That gave me a real a kick.”

Maassen was supported by Moreno Hofland, who was watching the race at home on television. “That was nice, because our TVs didn’t work in the car,” he said. Laurens ten Dam didn’t end the stage unscathed. The Dutchman was hit by a team car when he tried to return to the peloton after a bathroom break. “But Lau is a tough guy and despite some scratches he will be able to start tomorrow.”

Alberto Contador finished the stage with the other leaders after a windy day. Sunday’s last stage finishes on Montjuïc and will be the last chance to change the overall, “tomorrow is a stage that Joaquim (Rodriguez) knows very well,” said the Tinkoff-Saxo leader. “We have to look at the weather, because if it rains and is windy like today, it will be really difficult. I still remember the stage of the 2009 Tour, when we finished in Barcelona. It was a skating rink, we fell even on the straights,” recalled Contador. “It is clear that until the last line is passed we don’t finish the race, but I am very aware that although 4 seconds are very few, at the same time is a great distance.”

Despite the rain and wet roads on the Final Stage 7 in Catalunya, the leading Russian team Katusha let nothing deter them from the purpose of the day: to deliver Joaquim Rodriguez to the finish line as the winner of the 94th Volta Ciclista a Catalunya. Mission accomplished.

A happy Joaquim Rodriguez was content with this victory, saying, “This victory is important to me. It was a big race in Spain and also a WorldTour race. Now two weeks in a row we win in the WorldTour,” he said, referring to last week’s win by Alexander Kristoff in Milano-Sanremo. “Also this was a real race, especially when you saw Alberto Contador trying all the way to the end to gain the four seconds he needed. You saw the real Contador who always fights for victory. This race was especially hard with all the wind and the rain, but that’s what makes bike racing exciting. Otherwise there is nothing to organize.”

Katusha General Manager Viacheslav Ekimov had high praise for his riders: “To ‘Purito’ I want to send many congratulations and to say that I hope he feels well-prepared for the upcoming Ardennes classics. We believe he can show us something there, too. This is a WorldTour win and we all dream to have these wins and we’ve kept our fingers crossed that these things would happen for the Russian Global Cycling Project. Katusha Team is at such a high level on our morale right now. We’ll try to maintain this momentum for the classics in Belgium.”

A late attack from Alberto Contador was quickly brought back by Rodriguez, keeping the general classification status quo with fellow Spaniard Contador in second at four-seconds and American Tejay Van Garderen (BMC) rounding out the podium in third. With the win, Joaquim Rodriguez moves into fifth place on the UCI WorldTour.

Sports director Dmitry Konyshev added: “This WorldTour win is important for the team and for Joaquim too because he’s Catalan. One more time we’ve showed everyone that Katusha is a great team because we strive to work together. Today the team worked together perfectly. We let the breakaway go so there would be no time bonuses and they did a good job. Purito caught Contador’s last attack and was right there in the front for the sprint. He was perfect.”

After an initial 71 km on the open roads, the final stage included 8 local laps over the Alt de Montjuïc climb in the Barcelona area. Because of the wet roads, the laps were shortened from 6.2 km to 5km to ensure rider safety on the descents. Astana’s Lieuwe Westra attacked in the closing laps to claim a solo victory at 1:22 to Marcus Burghardt (BMC) and Thomas Voeckler of Europcar after two-and-a-half hours of racing. Rodriguez sprinted in with the GC favorites to take tenth on stage 7 at 2:07.

Rodriguez concluded: “I want to thank the organizers for taking away the dangerous part of the circuit and for thinking of the well-being of the riders. Now I look forward to trying to win in Liège-Bastogne-Liège and then on to the Giro d’Italia.

Alberto Contador completed the Volta a Catalunya in second place overall, but also tried to surprise on the last and dangerous circuit of Monjuic with rain and wet asphalt. After seven days of racing, the leader of Tinkoff-Saxo said he has “a pretty good balance. I have found myself good all around and with good sensations. Maybe I’ve missed some stage with a different finish and it’s a pity that I have not taken better advantage of the mountain stages, especially Vallter 2000, but I’m very happy, especially on how I recovered day by day,” he said. “Although I have done already a hard work in different competitions, I feel good, both physically and mentally and rested for the next target; the Basque Country.” He has regrets “of Vallter 2000, because maybe I could have insisted more, I think that I had the legs for the stage and could have tried something more for the overall, but tactically there are times you play one way and others, another.”

Alberto tried to do something until the end, “I’ve tried at 1 and 2 laps to go. Today I think they have done the right, they have cut the parcours because of the danger, but it has also removed some hardness to the climb and it was more difficult to surprise. Anyway, Joaquim has been very attentive at all times and I can only congratulate him.”

Tinkoff-Saxo DS, Philippe Mauduit: “It was a nasty finale concluding a very tough week and the race organizers actually shortened the circuit to avoid a few dangerous curves. Alberto tried his best to gain the time needed but Purito (Rodriguez) was just too strong to drop. Naturally, it can be frustrating being this close to the overall win but Alberto showed continuous great form and now, we’re looking forward to the Pays Basque.”

BMC rider Tejay Van Garderen’s podium placing came on the strength of his stage 4 win Thursday on one of the race’s two mountain-top finishes. It follows a runner-up result at the Tour of Oman last month. “It was really a successful week,” van Garderen said. “I had no idea how my form was going to be coming into it after the setback I had before Paris-Nice. I stayed confident and the team showed a lot of confidence in me. They all rode really well. I think we have the momentum back and we’re looking forward to the next race, which is Pays Basque.” Van Garderen tried an attack on the final climb of eight laps of a circuit in Barcelona, but could not distance himself from the peloton and finished 14th on the day. In the final standings, he was seven seconds behind race winner Joaquin Rodriguez (Katusha) and three seconds behind runner-up Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo).

Stef Clement battled through the wind and rain to finish safely in the peloton on the final stage to step onto the podium as Belkin’s winner of the Mountains Classification: “You just have to keep on trying, that’s what cycling is all about,” said Clement “you do your job and keep battling and eventually it will all come right at one time. This week was that time. It’s a huge thrill to be able to do this with the team and the morale has been so high it just carries you forward and inspires you. I normally like the heat and the sun but it seems that I can cope with the worst of weather too!”

Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali 2014
Ben Swift (Sky) won the morning Stage 1a of 99.5 kilometres round Gatteo and took the first leaders jersey. Swift out sprinted Manuele Mori (Lampre-Merida) and Damiano Caruso (Cannondale) from a group of 50 riders that got together after a split on the final climb with around 20 kilometres to go. This was Swift’s first win of the season showing his top form after his 3rd place in Milano-Sanremo.

The Sky A team of Swift, Kennaugh, Cataldo and Kiryienka beat RusVelo B and Cannondale B to extend Ben Swift’s overall lead in the Stage 1b team time trial. The teams split into two squads for the 11.2 kilometres and Sky A were 15 seconds too good for the Russian squad and Swift was now 6 seconds ahead of his team mates going into stage 2.

In Stage 2 it was the turn of Peter Kennaugh to win the stage and take the overall lead. Kennaugh broke away with Francesco Bongiorno (Bardiani-CSF) and then dropped him to finish 2 seconds ahead of the Italian and 48 seconds before Matteo Rabottini (Yellow Fluo) and the rest of the chasers. Now Kennaugh leads Bongiorno by 42 seconds and his team mate Dario Cataldo by 1 minute.

Cannondale’s Elia Viviani beat Ben Swift at the end of Stage 3 in Crevalcore after 158.4 kilometres. The race was made up of 12 laps of a 13.2 kilometre circuit and Sky’s overall leader; Pete Kennaugh had no problem finishing with the main bunch to hold on to his lead of 42 seconds over Francesco Manuel Bongiorno (Bardiani-CSF). An escape group of eighteen riders had a maximum lead of one and a half minutes after 5 laps, but it was all together with 5 to go. A large group of around 90 riders fought out the sprint with Viviani getting the better of the Sky train on the line.

Sky’s Dario Cataldo won the hilly 10 kilometre Final Stage 4 time trial, but his team mate Pete Kennaugh held onto the overall lead. Cataldo won in a time of 16:28 beating Kennaugh by 48 seconds, but as he had a 1 minute lead at the start of the day there was no problem. With his ride Cataldo jumped over Matteo Bongiorno (Bardiani-CSF) to move into second overall, Matteo Rabottini (Neri Sottoli-Yellow Fluo) also beat Bongiorno and took 3rd overall.

Critérium International 2014Stage 1 of the Critérium International on Saturday was initiated with a 89 kilometre short and flat stage in and around Porto-Vecchio, it was tailor-made for the sprinters. The stage went exactly by the book with an eager group of escapees trying to deny the sprinters of their obvious and only opportunity in the race as the other two stages are an individual time trial later and a mountain stage on Sunday. With 20 kilometres to go, the pack was together and the sprinter teams picked up the pace on the run-in to Porto-Vecchio. Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ.fr) won the sprint from Nathan Haas (Garmin-Sharp) and Tinkoff-Saxo’s Marko Kump was third.

Tinkoff-Saxo DS, Fabrizio Guidi states: “Marko has been increasingly good form and he worked hard during Paris-Nice and it pays off now. It was a very tough sprint and its windy here, which also might have an impact on the results of tonight’s individual time trial over 7 kilometres. The guys are ordered to give full gas and we’ll see how far that’ll take us.”

Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Shimano) won the individual time trial and took the overall lead in the race. The Dutchman blitzed the 7km rolling parcours in 9 minutes and 7 seconds, putting 3 seconds into Rohan Dennis (Garmin-Sharp). After going close in the time trials at Ruta del Sol and Tirreno-Adriatico, in Stage 2 he was the fastest.

It is Tom’s first win of the season, his coach, Christian Guiberteau said after the stage: “Tom did a great TT today, and it’s a great boost for his morale after lots of near misses and second places. The course started off with a tough uphill start followed by a technical descent. The second half was then much more suited to Tom on flatter, fast roads.”
“It will be a tough fight tomorrow with the finishing col and the time gaps are still quite small but we will make a plan for this and give it everything.”

Resplendent in his new yellow jersey, Tom Dumoulin said: “Finally, after lots of close calls and second places it’s great to get a win. I went full gas from the off and did a good ride, nailed all the corners and had good power on the fast sections. Once again the Giant Trinity TT bike felt so smooth and fast and mentally that’s a huge boost when you’re hurting. It’s great to win here in Corsica again after our Tour success here last year. It seems that we have a good connection with yellow jersey’s in Corsica.”

Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Shimano) started the day in the leader’s jersey when the peloton took on the Final Stage 3 of the French stage race, Criterium International. But as the stage offered a tremendously mountainous terrain with a 14 kilometre long uphill finish, no one expected Dumoulin to hang on to the jersey.

Tinkoff-Saxo played an important role controlling the pace thundering towards the foot of the mountain top finish and 13 kilometres to go, everyone was brought back. Even though the tempo was held high, Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Shimano) was very hard to drop and with 7 kilometres, he was sitting comfortably in the middle of the reduced front group.
But with 5 kilometres to go, the leader’s jersey dropped out the back of the group and new attacks from among others Frank Schleck (Trek) dominated the finale but Tinkoff-Saxo’s Rafal Majka quickly responded to every attack. On the finish line, Mathias Frank (IAM) was the fastest rider.

Third overall, Tiago Machado (NetApp-Endura): “The final wasn’t easy today, although I knew the course very well from my 2nd place in 2010 and my 5th place in 2011. I had to suffer, but this is the life of a rider. To be honest, I was surprised when I caught the leaders, thinking I could take a quick breath once I am with them and then fight for the stage but unfortunately the guys attacked again too early, so I had to make the best out of it and headed for the podium. I wanted to pay off my team, which did a great job this weekend supporting me. I am more than happy with my teammates and the Sport Directors”, states Tiago Machado after the race.

Tinkoff-Saxo DS, Fabrizio Guidi says: “I think we can be very happy with our young line-up in this race securing the overall 4th position and winner of the youth classification. Of course, we always want to win big but Rafal has just returned from injuries after Paris-Nice and he clearly shows that he’s in good shape covering every move on the climb. He’s not the best sprinter and had to settle with fifth on the stage. He’s on the right track. Now, he needs some more training preparing the Giro.”

The PEZ NEWSWIRE!
Don’t forget to check the “NEWSWIRE” section, you can find it down the right hand side on the home page, just above the EuroTrash section. The bits of news that missed the EuroTrash deadline are in there, plus any news as-it-happens will be added there too.